The Eastern Wind: Elemental Refuge
by Saintified4
Summary: Another Civil War has broken out and Equestria sees a new ruler. Now three rebels must use their special gifts to stand up to the evil King and take back their homeland
1. Chapter 1: The Royal Arch

**Alright. Yeah, I know it doesn't really work like this, but here's something else to wait for while I'm in exams. This is a MY LITTLE PONY fanfic I wanted to do for awhile. So here you go: The Eastern Wind: Elemental Refuge.**

Chapter 1: The Royal Arch

It was a cold day in Canterlot. Snow falling was an obivious sign that Winter was here. In one of the alleys in the streets was a pony standing against one of the walls. She was a unicorn with a white coat, red mane with yellow highlights. Her Cutie Mark was a prism with a flaming arch pointing Northeast. She called herself Rubyshine. She had quite a past here, even though she grew up in Fillydelphia. She suddenly put up her hood as two guards walked past. Canterlot has fallen under the control of King Ironmane, a very powerful unicorn who won the recent war and the same one who took her parents. Going into hiding, she had to work under the name Arch Flame. Something was strange about her though. She had the unusual ability to control and manipulate the very essence of fire down to the atoms. This was discovered through a very long period of meditation after she witnessed the lost of her parents. "Hey, you!" She heard. She turned around and saw two guards walking slowly towards her. "Hay…" she whispered and started to run the opposite direction. "Stop!" she heard as the guards started running after her. The chase ensued through outside Canterlot as the clouds started to drum together…

**Somewhere over the skies of Manehattan…**

"I don't see her anywhere" Winterhope said, obvious disappointment in her voice. Winterhope was a cerulean pegasus mare with a white mane and long tale with navy highlights. Her cutie mark was a wave of snow with a few snowflakes. "She should be here." Stardream said. "The map pointed us here. We should try Canterlot next" Stardream was a pegasus stallion with a violet coat purple and yellow mane and tail. His cutie mark was a thundercloud with a yellow star inside. They both landed on the ground and approached two ponies sitting on a bench. One was an Earth pony stallion with a green coat and a black mane and tail with a sword and a four-leaf clover cutie mark, and the other was a unicorn stallion with a purple coat, orange mane and tail with gray highlights, and a book with a strange symbol for a cutie mark. Stardream approached the two ponies and pulled out a paper. "have you seen anypony looking like this?" The 'pony' was an image of Rubyshine with her alternate name "Arch Flame" printed above the image. The two ponies just shook their heads and left. Stardream and Winterhope let out an irritated sigh. "I give up!" Stardream said in frustration. "Come on Stardream, you know without her, we can't stand up to Ironmane." Winterhope replied. "I know." Stardream said, "But it's like she's never been here. She grew up here, for Celestia's sake!" Suddenly Stardream realised that everypony was staring at him and Winterhope. "We should get outta here." Winterhope whispered. Stardream nodded, and they took off Southwest to Canterlot's direction.

**Back outside of Canterlot…**

Rubyshine was getting tired running from these guards, who increased from two to about five in numbers. Rubyshine was too focused on getting away that she didn't realise that she's right about outside the border of Ponyville. She stopped right outside of the gates, and collapsed of exhaustion. She looked up to see the guards moving in. _How do they keep this up? Has my luck run out this time? I guess it's time to see the King._ Suddenly, a bolt of lightnig seared through the air, hitting two of the guards. A wave of ice took care of the other, knocking them off their hooves. Rubyshine got up slowly. Now that these guards aren't chasing her, she could get a better look at them. They're different from before Ironmane took over. Instead of the generic white-coat, blue-maned, golden armor guards that were on-duty when Celestia and Luna ruled, these guards had gray coats, black manes and Obsidian armor. After Rubyshine analysed the guards, she looked around to find whoever saved her. She could'nt see anything until she heard a voice behind her that made her jump from fright. "Hi." Rubyshine turned around to see two pegasi standing behind her. The purple one held out his hoof and introduced himself: "I'm Stardream, and this is Winterhope." Stardream motions over to the blue pegasus, indicating that she must be Winterhope. Rubyshine hesitated but shook Stardream's hoof and said "I'm Rubyshine, and I should probably thank you for saving me back there" Stardream nodded and said "No problem, but we have to talk" Rubyshined was confused. "We?" Stardream nodded with a serious face. "And what place better than Ponyville?" Stardream motioned towards Ponyville, which was a few meter away from the trio. Rubyshine didn't say anything, but she could think a many other places.

**Well, Tell me what you think through review, or PM's. NOTE: A Saint Deserves A Greater Challenge is NOT Discontinued. I'll try to finish it, but no promises.**


	2. Chapter 2: Foreverfree

Chapter 2: Foreverfree

**Saintified4 here. I don't have much to say here, except my exams finish up this week. Enjoy**

As the group walked into Ponyville, they could feel the other ponies watching them with every move they make. Some even rushed back into their homes. Rubyshine felt really uncomfortable, but had to stick with the other two. She could see Winterhope was just as uncomfortable, but Stardream didn't look affected by the unwanted attention. They eventually came by an alley between two houses. Stardream turned around and made sure nopony else was following, then approached the wall and felt over it with his front hoof. "It's gotta be here somewhere" Rubyshine heard him mutter. "Aha" he finally said and pressed on one of the bricks. Suddenly, a part of the floor opened right next to Stardream. "Winterhope, Rubyshine." Winterhope broke away from her guarding stance and followed Stardream and Rubyshine into the open part of the floor. On the way inside was a hallway of wooden stairs leading underground, with dusty walls and bugs crawling every now and then. As they walked down, they eventually came to a large cave with a building in the middle. Stalagmites dotting the roof and a cold breeze blowing. It made Rubyshine shiver, but Winterhope seemed to enjoy it. _Typical. _Rubyshine thought. _I still don't know if I can trust these ponies. _Trust. That made her shiver again. The last time she trusted someone, it didn't end well. Her parents being taken as a result. She had another flashback. She just wished she could get rid of them, but they keep coming back…

_MOMMY! Young Rubyshine yelled. Tears in her eyes. RUBY! Her mother yelled back. As the cart rode away, Rubyshine could feel a hoof in front of her. A unicorn. She knew this unicorn. She didn't know how, but she knew him. There was something particular about this unicorn. His horn. It's very shiny, like it's made of a metal of some type. Iron. Ironmane. Now she knew who this was. His eyes were a brilliant orange, and she could see the evil in it. The kind of evil that could kill with no mercy. Ironmane stepped forward and commanded the wagon to stop. He turned to Rubyshine and said, with a cold, yet soothing voice: "I'm sorry it had to be this way, little filly". She saw his horn glow orange and she began to feel sleepy. She fought. Fought to keep herself up. Fought for her parents on the wagon. She fought, even if it was a lost cause. And then it happened. The explosion. Through the slits of her eyes she made as she was falling under Ironmane's Sooth spell. She could see the burning wagon. The bloody remains of her parents. Ironmane's cape suddenly blocked her view and saw another orange glow before she fell to the ground. Mommy… Daddy…_

Rubyshine finally snapped out her flashback when she heard Stardream yell out her name. "Rubyshine! What's going on?" Rubyshine hesitated "It's… It's nothing. What were we talking about again?" Stardream sighed and motioned her into the makeshift house in the middle of the cave. The interior looked like a normal house. Kitchen, bathroom, bedroom. Rubyshine was amazed. "Did you build this on your own?" Stardream hesitated and Winterhope looked away. "We… probably shouldn't get into detail with that." This raised suspicion within Rubyshine, but she shook it off. She walked to the table as Stardream pulled out a big scroll, big enough to cover a small dining table. "Ever heard of the Foreverfree Prophecy?" Rubyshine shook her head and said "Enlighten me." Stardream pointed to various aspects of the scroll as he explained the prophecy: "The Foreverfree Prophecy depicts the creation of Equestria: Two celestial beings: Sunstar, the Being of Positive Energy, and Moonglyph, the Being of Negative Energy, ultimately combined their power to form a planetary body, which they called Zarzix, which translates from the Ancient Equestrilibrium "Total Creation". From this they created the first clan of Ancient Unicorns…" Stardream looked up in shock. "What is it, Stardream?" Winterhope asked. "I knew it!" He yelled. "Look here. At this one, here on the left." He pointed to one of the Ancient Unicorns with a few scrolls in his magical grasp. Then Rubyshine noticed it. The Unicorn's horn. It's made of iron.

"Ironmane has the rest of the prophecy."

**Cliffhanger! I'm getting better at this. Stay tuned for the next Chapter. Saintified4 out.**


	3. Chapter 3: Vivid Visions

Chapter 3: Vivid Visions

**Exams are over and vacation begins. I'm gonna try to publish these faster and with longer chapters**

As the three Elementals walked out of their hideout, Stardream turned to Rubyshine and said "Remember, the moment we walk out of this cave, We're no longer Stardream and Winterhope. If Ironmane knew our real names, he could cause some serious damage. We work under the aliases Thunderdusk and Skyfreeze. You'll need an alternate name too if you wanna protect your real identity." Rubyshine smiled, bowed and said "Arch Flame, at your service" Thunderdusk smiled and said "Nice. Now let's go."

As they walked out of the alley, up on the rooftops: two ponies, cloaked in darkness, was staring down at them. The cloaks they wear are emitting dark fog, giving them an even more evil look, as if they are emitting shadows. The one on the left turns to the other and says "What do you think Sidon? Is it them the King sent us after?" Sidon turns and says "Not sure, Tyrus. Maybe we should find out." They both jumped down from the rooftops infront of the trio on their way to Canterlot. The group stops and looks at the two ponies staring at them with cold, yellow eyes. Arch Flame instantly notices their pupils are narrow slits, like bats' eyes. The one on the right speaks up "Are you the Elementals?" The left one keeps staring at them. "Maybe" Thunderdusk retorts "Why are you asking?" They begin to smile. "I'll take that as a yes" They leaned backwards so their cloaks fall off of them, revealing bat wings on each one. Their manes and tails were a brilliant black, and it was ripped. Their coats were a crimson colour, with small black dots here and there. They were wearing heavy Equestrian armour, and with visible blades sticking out. The only thing that could tell them apart, was that they both had a strange symbol on their forehead, Each has a different symbol. Then Arch Flame saw it. No cutie mark. These aren't ordinary ponies, that's for sure. They both introduced themselves. "Tyrus and Sidon. Loyal servants and creations of King Ironmane" **"**_Creations"_ thought Arch Flame. _What do they mean by that?_ Tyrus was the first one to attack. He flew up in the air, drew his sword and charged at Arch Flame. The sword pulsed with dark red energy as it drew near. Arch Flame dodged the attack and Tyrus flew right into the ground, sticking the sword deep into the soil. He struggled to free the sword, and Arch Flame saw her chance. She ran up to him, jumped and slammed her hoof into his face. This sent Tyrus and the sword flying back. As Tyrus got up, Arch Flame prepared a spark from her horn, and it turned into a flame. She concentrated her magic and shot a firebolt at Tyrus. It did a small explosion, and Arch Flame hoped to see Tyrus lying on the ground, but instead he's standing, smiling. "But… how?" Arch Flame wondered out loud. She noticed something behind her, but she didn't have time to turn around as she's blasted back. A Shockwave of some kind. As she got up. She saw Sidon's symbol glowing. "You're not the only one with magic" he remarked. "Hey" Thunderdusk said, trying to get the twins' attention. "Think you can get away with something like that?" He looked at Skyfreeze standing next to him, and then to the twins. Tyrus smiled and said "We plan to get away with far more than just that" Both their symbols glowed and summoned energy spheres, which proceeded to fire projectiles at Thunderdusk and Skyfreeze. They both started to flap their wings and took to the air, dodging the projectiles as it felt like they were increasing in both numbers and speed. After Thunderdusk gained a clear shot, he started to build up electricity in his body and concentrated it into his hooves. When it reached the tips of his hooves, he thrusts them out, creating a wave of electricity. Tyrus and Sidon broke the spheres and ran opposite directions to avoid the attack. As Sidon ran, he didn't notice Skyfreeze flying in his direction and unleashing an ice volley. The volley hit him in the side and let him skid across the ground, in pain. As Tyrus turned around to help Sidon, another firebolt hit him, this time knocking him of his hooves and also send him sliding. He got up and yelled to Sidon "Come brother, we must return to the king and inform him of this battle." He started to take to the air, with Sidon following, but Thunderdusk cut them off in mid-air. "Where do you two think you're going?" He started to build up electricity, by Tyrus cut him off by sending a magic shockwave into him. The shockwave knocked him out of the air and let him fall to the ground. Before he could make impact, Skyfreeze flew down and caught him. She put him gently down next to Arch Flame. As they watched the bat-ponies fly off, Thunderdusk got up and started to run the same direction. "Thunderdusk, wait!" Skyfreeze yelled. "Where are you going?" Thunderdusk looked at Skyfreeze as if that was a dumb question. "Those two are on their way to the King. We are too. Come on!" Before Thunderdusk could run any further, he felt a biting sensation on his tail. Arch Flame was trying to stop him. "What are you doing, Arch? Come on!" he said. She let go and tried to change his mind. "If we launch a direct assault on the King now, then we're signing our own death wishes. Slow down there." Thunderdusk looked annoyed that Arch Flame was trying to act the leading part. He started this rebellion, it would only be fitting if he had the ruling say, but, then again, that would make his system a lot like Ironmane's. Thunderdusk sighed, turned to Arch Flame and said "Fine. What do you have in mind?" Arch Flame thought a little before she said "I have a hunch, and it involves the Everfree Forest. You ready for an outing?"

**King Ironmane's castle, Canterlot**

Tyrus and Sidon landed on the porch just outside Ironmane's courtroom. The guards raised their spears and let them through. Inside, Ironmane was sitting on his throne, busy talking with his Advisor, Cruel Sea. Cruel Sea was a dark blue pegasus, with a brown and cyan mane and tail. The feathers on his wings were extremely pointy, comparable to a very fine crafted, sharp sword. Cruel Sea's cutie mark was a shipwreck with a lightning bolt through it. As Tyrus and Sidon approached, Ironmane dismissed Cruel Sea and focused his attention on them. "I expect your mission was successful?" Tyrus and Sidon bowed, and Sidon was the first to speak "Uh… Well, your majesty, we… we found the Elementals, but…" Tyrus finished Sidon's sentence "…they were too strong for us, your Majesty. We couldn't kill them" Ironmane began to get angry. "And you expect me to just keep you around? Give me one good reason why I should still keep you book-ends in my service" Sidon, in fear spoke up hesitantly "We found names, your Majesty. The names of the Elementals." Ironmane began to calm down. "Is that so?" he said. "Yes, I'll need all the information I can get. Fine, I'll give you a second chance, but mess this up again, and I'll prepare the Lion Cage specially just for you two. The minions thanked Ironmane and flew off into the halls. Ironmane called out Cruel Sea "Those two need to think about their failures. Get me the next best pony to finish off this little rebellion." Cruel Sea suggested just the right one for the job. "Shall I contact Neon Mirage?" Ironmane looked up to the stained glass on the ceiling. "Yes…" was all he said.

**The Elemental Rebellion, The Everfree Forest**

Arch Flame and the other two were walking through the forest for hours. It's already past dawn, and the nocturnal creatures are starting to wake up. As they walked, the only sound they could hear was their hooves crushing dead leaves, owls hooting and the occasional howl of a Timberwolf. The deeper they walked the darker it got, and not from the sky, but the trees felt like they were purposely closing in on the group. Skyfreeze looked around and asked "Are you sure about this Arch? I feel like I'm invading someone's privacy." Thunderdusk scoffed "Come on Skyfreeze, who owns the Everfree Forest?" Skyfreeze looked at Thunderdusk and said "Ironmane." Thunderdusk looked annoyed and said "Oh please, with what we're busy now, invading Ironmane's "privacy" is the least of our worries." "Will you two be quiet back there?" Arch Flame said, annoyed "I'm trying to find… well, I need to concentrate, so please…" Thunderdusk and Skyfreeze fell silent and followed Arch Flame. They eventually came to a basin-like formation of the forest, and in the middle was a wooden cabin. It looked abandoned. Thunderdusk and Skyfreeze weren't so sure, but Arch Flame looked excited. "I hope she's still here" Thunderdusk was confused "Whoever 'she' is, I doubt it. That cabin looks pretty abandoned." Arch Flame didn't look concerned and said "She liked this kinda lifestyle. I don't know why, but it made her feel comfortable." Arch Flame stepped forward, knocked on the door and called a name "Mirae? Mirae are you there?" No answer. Arch Flame began to worry. The door wasn't locked, so she could easily open it. Inside looked even worse. "I''d prefer our base in the cave over this place anytime" Thunderdusk remarked. Arch Flame looked around and said "Look around for anything suspicious. Mirae practiced with the arcane arts, so she's bound to have something unusual lying around here. The ponies searched everywhere. From in the grass on the roof to under the floorboards. Nothing. For half an hour, no one came up with anything. Thunderdusk was just about to give up when Skyfreeze called out to them. "Hey guys, I think I found something." Arch Flame and Thunderdusk rushed to Skyfreeze, who was holding a dark green orb, the size of a soccer ball. Skyfreeze held the orb out to Arch Flame who took it in her magical grasp. "What is it?" Skyfreeze asked. "I don't know. It looks like some kind of…" Suddenly the orb lit up, giving off a bright light. It was so sudden that Arch Flame lost her concentration and let go of the orb, letting it fall to the ground. The light on the orb refocused on the top, and a hologram appeared. The hologram was a pony dressed in a cloak. "Mirae?" Arch Flame asked, not sure if this was a recording or a live broadcast. "Rubyshine" The hologram spoke up "If you're watching this, please forgive me. I had to leave. His forces ambushed me. I had to clear up the cabin and hope you find this. I can't give you too much information in case somepony else got their hooves on this, that's why I'm asking you to forgive me" The hologram gave a short wave of static, indicating that it isn't functioning with full power and might be damaged. The hologram continued: "I knew Ironmane back in the early days. I don't know what changed. I just don't know. He changed. The power, it must have corrupted his thoughts. I was too late. The next thing I knew, he was fighting against the council, fighting to get the Ambassador to surrender. HE wanted to rule. I guess he got that in the end" The hologram gave a longer wave of static "My point is, there IS a way to stop him. He found Dark Magic. That must have been the reason. I just don't know where he got it. You, YOU, must learn the counter-spell. The Counterspell of the Paladin. It's the only way to (static) dark magic. Please (static) …our only hope. Oh no. I think they found me. (static) …me luck, Rubyshine _*struggle* *gasp*_ you'll never take me alive! Do you hear me?! (static)" This time the static remained. Either the recording was over, or the orb lost power. Either way, Arch Flame knew that the situation only just got worse. "Come on, I think I know where the recording was made." Arch Flame said to Thunderdusk and Skyfreeze. As they exited the cabin, they heard an unfamiliar voice: "Going somewhere?". Suddenly, a figure stepped out of the shadows. A unicorn. She had a white coat, and muti-coloured mane and tail, but Arch Flame got some bad vibes from her. Her cutie mark was a spiral, but what was weird about her, was the fact that her entire body kept changing colour. It's like she was a living aurora. Arch Flame was stunned. "Who the hay are you?" Thunderdusk asked. The pony looked unamused as she introduced herself. "They call me Neon Mirage. I am the embodiment of pure illusion. I have been sent to make you three's existences into an illusion. As slowly and painfully as possible. And the closer you look, the less you see…"

**Well, I'd say that worked out well enough. Stay tuned for Chapter 4: Now you see me.**


	4. Chapter 4: Skyfreeze vs Neon Mirage

Chapter 4: Skyfreeze vs Neon Mirage

**Bringing these out more often because why not? Reviews and PM's welcome.**

Neon Mirage's voice echoed like a siren's song through the forest as she spoke up "And the closer you look, the less you see". Thunderdusk was first to charge, but Neon Mirage's horn started to glow and she teleported away. As Thunderdusk looked around to where Neon Mirage could be, she teleported above him, summoned a spectral spear and charged downwards, missing Thunderdusk by a few centimetres as he rolled out of the way. He started to charge his lighting, but Neon Mirage intercepted by charging her magic and blasting it at Thunderdusk. It hit him in the chest and sent him skidding backwards. Arch Flame stepped forward and shot a firebolt at Neon Mirage, making contact and exploding, forming smoke everywhere. Arch Flame smiled proudly, but was interrupted by Neon Mirage's laugh. The smoke started changing colour and forming into spears. Neon Mirage stood in the centre, smiling. "Big mistake, filly" she said, threw her head forward making the spears fly at an incredible speed towards Arch Flame. She felt something hitting her from the side as she saw the smoke spears pass. Skyfreeze helped her. For just a few seconds, Arch Flame felt something weird. She was thankful, yes, but that wasn't quite it. As they both got up to help Thunderdusk, Neon Mirage started to charge up her magic. As the trio got up to face her again, a sudden burst of her magic flooded the forest with her aura. The brightness blinded the other, and as Skyfreeze tried to get a view of Neon Mirage, she saw the pony running deeper into the forest. Skyfreeze saw her chance and went after Neon Mirage. She didn't even hear Arch Flame and Thunderdusk call out her name.

Skyfreeze ran until she came into an opening similar to the one with Mirae's cabin, but with darker grass and more trees. She looked around to see if she can spot Neon Mirage and finished her. I wasn't until Neon Mirage appeared with spectral Timberwolves that she realised that the other two didn't follow her. She was all alone, facing against a powerful enemy. Neon Mirage spoke, which made Skyfreeze woozy, but she kept her balance. "Why?" Skyfreeze was confused. "Why waste your time with those other two? The King can use somepony like you." Skyfreeze felt disgusted "I will never give over to the King!" "Why? Because _they_ said so? Because if you don't work with them you'll be lost? Even dead?" Neon Mirage was very persuasive. "Come now, Skyfreeze. You know better. Why work against the inevitable? Think of the power he could grant you. Even a title: Commander Skyfreeze. It has a nice ring to it." Skyfreeze was thinking now. _It DOES sound… promising… no. NO. _"NO!" Skyfreeze yelled out in anger. She flew up and started to generate ice spikes, which she threw at the spectral Timberwolves, one by one dissipating. Neon Mirage looked at Skyfreeze without emotion and sighed "Well, I tried, but you left me with no choice. The King would've made good use of you." Skyfreeze's anger just built up. "I am not to be used!" She charged at Neon Mirage while forming an ice sword. She jumped up and impaled Neon Mirage in the chest. Blood was flowing, but Neon Mirage stayed emotionless. She started to laugh, and Skyfreeze became confused. "Did you really think that THIS would stop me?" Neon Mirage started to fade. Skyfreeze tried to lodge the sword deeper, but she couldn't feel anything. Neon Mirage appeared behind her and started to slash her with a spectral sword. Skyfreeze fought back with her ice sword, but Neon Mirage was too strong and overwhelmed Skyfreeze. As she lay on the ground, with her sword still in grip, and Neon Mirage on top of her. "You cannot win, Skyfreeze." She said "Ironmane shall reign." "You're just a mercenary Neon Mirage" Skyfreeze retorted. "You don't care about making a point. You don't care about showing other people your power of Illusion. You're just another grunt that wants to get paid." Skyfreeze could see something changed in Neon Mirage's face. Emotion. Anger. Hatred. The desire to finish Skyfreeze. Neon Mirage didn't say anything. She lifted her spectral sword and adjusted it that the sharp end is aiming at Skyfreeze's throat. Skyfreeze saw her chance and flew up, breaking contact with Neon Mirage. She kept on flying until she could see most of Equestria. Then she flew down. The faster she flew, the colder it got. She came close enough to the ground to be able to see Neon Mirage. She sped up, and hit Neon Mirage with her front hooves as she collided with the ground. The resulting explosion was louder than she thought. When she got up, a little bruised, she saw her surroundings had ice and snow everywhere, but no sign of Neon Mirage anywhere. She ran back the way she came from, to the cabin. When she got there, there was no sign of Arch Flame or Thunderdusk anywhere

_We should never have split up like that_ was the last thing that came to her mind before she saw a flash of purple and ran towards it.

**Reviews and PM's welcome.**


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